I contemplated writing this book for eight years before beginning it. I knew I had to tell my son’s story for several reasons, not the least of which was I wanted other parents who were going through a major trauma with their child whether it is a brain injury, autism, epilepsy or mental illness to understand that they are not alone. That there is a community of mothers, fathers and siblings who have had similar experiences and know how they are feeling. A community that is not always easy to access, because there is no one website for parents whose hearts are breaking, for parents who need to find answers, but don’t always know who to ask, for parents who need financial assistance, but do not know how to go about obtaining it. I wanted them to understand that there are mothers like myself who have gone to hell and back who want to help.

A Life Put on Hold is the story of my son, Seth who had behavioral, auditory and socialization challenges from the start, and yet when I questioned his odd behaviors, everyone around me told me I was imaging it, or making a big deal out of nothing. For a while I stopped asking, and stopped pushing. I accepted what the doctors told me. That was a huge mistake on my part. I have nothing, but the utmost respect for the medical profession, but they are not gods, they do not know everything and every once in a great while they make mistakes.

As well-meaning and skilled as my son’s doctors were they missed a very important element that may have been investigated had we belong to a different ethnicity. We are from eastern European Jewish descent. My son as it turned out, had Moyamoya, a condition that is more likely to be found in the Japanese community. The disorder narrows the walls of a carotid artery in the brain, causing a decrease in blood flow. It’s likely that Seth was born with this condition, but no one even checked for it until severe headaches surfaced when he was 14. I believe many of his earlier issues were probably related to this condition.

A Life Put on Hold discusses the lessons I, as Seth’s mother, advocate and conservator, have learned along the way and how it has helped shape my son’s life and ours.

This is Seth’s story as seen through my eyes.

“A Life Put on Hold: My Son’s Journey with Brain Injury and the Lessons I’ve Learned Along the Way” is available as an ebook on Amazon and other online sites.